WHERE IS RaGa? CONGRESSMEN WONDER

Mumbai: There’s one question reverberating across Congress circles in Maharashtra: Where is Rahul Gandhi? Two very senior Congress leaders Sushilkumar Shinde and Prithviraj Chavan (both former Maharashtra CMs) piqued curiosity by stating that neither has met RaGa for six years and 3.5 years, respectively.

“When is Rahul Gandhi coming back to India? Why hasn’t he come back after summons were issued to him by the Enforcement Directorate? Why does he keep disappearing from time to time? He has apparently taken off on a sojourn after his scheduled meeting at Cambridge University in London,” another senior Congress leader told First India, asking not to be named.

This person added that Gandhi cannot go incognito as he is a Congress party decision-maker and not a private person, adding “Sadly, that has become his style. This does not bode well for the party, particularly with Rajya Sabha elections for 57 seats scheduled in eight to 10 states.”

The disarray is apparent especially when First India spoke to Congress leaders on the nomination of Imran Pratapgarhi--a rank outsider who lost in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections by a huge margin after Priyanka Vadra fielded him there-- for the sole Rajya Sabha seat from Maharashtra.

Even as Pratapgarhi’s candidature for the Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra was being finalized, rumours abounded about state leader Baba Siddiqui seeking an RS nomination from another party. When asked about it, he said, “Reports about my seeking an RS nomination from the RJD are only rumours put out by the media.” He said that Congressmen were united in Maharashtra, although he appeared less convinced himself.

According to another senior Congress leader, “Rahul Gandhi was expected to be at hand tackling the RS polls scheduled for June 10. Instead, he said he’d be available online if any RS poll-related problems arise. Now with a second ED summons issued to him, we hope he will arrive in India sooner.”

For the Maharashtra RS polls, resentment is brewing in the Congress camp. As one leader put it, “It will be a tricky situation. We have 44 votes (42 required). If two MLAs absent themselves on June 10, then it may go to preferential voting and even one vote miscast will defeat the Congress nominee. After June 07, the Congress MLAs may need to be shepherded and ensconced in a resort or fivestar hotel to guard against this probable fallout.”